She Went with Him
by ToDieYoung
Summary: Harry saw the flash of green light, he felt Hermione's grip on his hand loosen, and he watched the light leave her eyes. He caught her body, and held it to him. He'd fall with her, he thought. He'd hold her up until the end. Harry/Hermione FRIENDSHIP!


She Went with Him

Hermione sat alone on the destroyed staircase. Ron was with his family, still grieving over the loss of his brother. She thought that they needed their alone time, to cope with the devastation as a family.

In all honesty, she needed some alone time too. She needed to go over everything in her head, needed to figure out what they would do next. Harry was at the pensive, he would be back any minute with new information; whether it was good or bad, she did not know.

A few moments passed, and the object of her thoughts himself came slowly down the stairs behind her. His face was emotionless, eyes glaring forward, set on a task unknown. Suddenly, her heart dropped to her stomach. She realized she had known all along; she had no need to ask. She stood up immediately, perhaps a bit too fast, but she did not care.

"I'll go with you." She offered, automatically. She had been through everything with him, and this would be no exception.

"No. Kill the snake. Kill the snake, and then it's just him…" Harry avoided her eyes as he spoke to her; instead he stared at her feet.

Tears welled up in her eyes, and she could barely speak, "Ron…" she thought of her love, of the future they would not have together, "Ron knows. He'll be able to do it. He- he'll see it through, Harry. Please, Harry-"

"Hermione, no. I'm not letting you get hurt, you're too- Look. It's not your destiny, it's mine. You have a future, I don't. And I love you, Hermione, I do. But you don't need to die for me."

She ran to him, and he caught her. They held each other tightly, and each felt safe in the other's arms. Hermione stood up on her tiptoes, and whispered softly, but firmly in his ear, "I don't want a future without my best friend. We go together."

She broke from his embrace, and took his hand, pulling him to get him moving. They entwined fingers, and silently walked across the grounds towards their fate.

Harry didn't know why he let her pull him, why he was allowing her to meet her doom along with him. They had established, a long time ago, that he was her brother, and that she was his sister. Did that not mean he was supposed to be her protector? He had had the idea in his mind for so long, that he was responsible for keeping her safe, for making sure that she was as far away from danger as damn well possible. Now though, she was pulling him towards their unmistakable fate, and he was letting her.

But then he realized something . . .

When they got to the edge of the forest, Harry suddenly stopped walking. Hermione turned to him, curiosity etched upon her tired features. With out letting go of his friend's hand, Harry reached into the pouch around his neck, pulled out the tiny, golden snitch, and pressed it to his lips. As he whispered the words, _"We're about to die."_ Hermione saw the snitch crack open, and a tiny stone marked with the symbol she had been so fascinated with for the past few months appeared from the inside.

Harry looked at her face, which was now stricken with fear. He knew that the idea of bringing back the dead scarred her, maybe even more so than the aspect of actually dying. He ran his thumb gently, comfortingly over the top of her hand, and she stepped closer to him. He wedged the stone in between their joined hands, and together, they turned it three times.

Hermione opened her eyes, and four people stood in front of her. She recognized two as people she'd met before, and rationalized that the other two must be Harry's mum and dad.

Harry suddenly stepped forward, still not breaking contact with Hermione, to reach out for his mother; but when their hands touched, his passed right through hers. Hermione felt her heart break for him a little, and she squeezed his hand. Harry looked back at her, attempted to smile, and returned the pressure. He turned back to his mother. She smiled at him, and whispered, "You've been so brave, sweetheart."

Hermione watched as Harry apologized for all of their deaths, and she couldn't help but to roll her eyes, but she didn't have the heart right now to tell her companion that they hadn't died for him, but for a greater cause. So, she just stared at him, taking him in for the last time.

She had never realized how marvelous her Harry had become. He was covered in dirt and dried blood, and he had several cuts and bruises on his skin, but under all that, she could tell he had changed from the little boy she had always seen in her mind. He had grown quite a bit, so much so that he was now noticeably taller than her. He was still skinny, because of the malnourishment they had gone through during the past few months, but then again, he wasn't quite as lanky as her Ron.

But she felt foolish for even comparing them! They were both her boys, yes. And she loved them both equally, but in two totally different ways. In the end, though, she had to choose her brother. She would stay with him to the end, because they were all each other had.

Ron had a family, he had so many people to care for him, he would not be deprived at all if he were to loose the other two that had, for so many years, made up their trio. But for Harry and Hermione, it was different. If one of them were to loose the other, they would be lost. Hermione recognized Harry as the only family she had left, and she was sure he felt the same way. Ron would be in a state of complete and utter grief for a while, sure. But in the end, he'd still have his family; he'd never really be alone.

Hermione was pulled out of her trance, however, when Harry asked Sirius whether it would hurt to die, a question that had not even crossed Hermione's mind, yet she now felt quite compelled to know the answer to. Harry must have felt her tense, because he pulled her even closer to him as Sirius answered, "Quicker and easier than falling asleep."

Harry looked back at Hermione, who was standing slightly behind him, still afraid of the suddenly reanimated people standing before them. He pulled her forward slightly, gently, toward his mother.

"Mum, I… I wanted you to meet my sister, Hermione. She's a very dear friend of mine, and she insisted that she would come with me. Well, she's insisted all her life, really; she's never left. She's so brave, probably even more so than I am. She's _everything_ to me, and I wish you could have met her, you would have loved her just as much as I do." As Harry spoke, tears streamed down his face. He had meant every word, and Lily smiled proudly at her son, while Hermione went up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

"I love you too, Harry." She whispered in his ear, so that none of the souls standing around them could hear.

They looked at each other, and instantly knew they were ready. Harry spoke to his mother again, "You'll stay with me?"

"Always." Lily answered her boy.

The two let their hands go, dropping the stone to the forest floor. The people standing around them vanished from sight, but the teenagers could still feel their presence.

Harry took Hermione's hand again, and started walking. He liked how soft and small her hand felt in his rough, calloused ones. He noticed she was shaking with fear, and he squeezed her hand even tighter.

Suddenly, they heard voices. Hiding behind a tree, they peeked their heads out to get a better view. They could easily see Voldemort, surrounded by his Death Eaters, the snake hissing at his feet. They would not attempt to kill the snake. It might provoke a Cruciatus curse, and they wanted this done as quickly as possible.

Harry turned to Hermione, and took his best friend in his arms. He held her, silently saying goodbye, telling her how much he appreciated her, and thanking her for everything she'd done for him. She felt so tiny in his arms, so vulnerable. He wished she didn't have to die, but he knew that she would never back out. She wanted to do this with him, to be there for him. He kissed the top of her head and let her go, gently taking her hand.

They walked into the crowd of Death Eaters. They all turned to face them, some had smiles on their faces, relief washed over the majority; they wouldn't have to go back to battle.

Hagrid was there, also. He was chained up, and when he saw them, he roared with anger, "Harry! Hermione! No! What'er yah doin' here?"

"Scilence!" ordered Voldemort, and with a casual flick of the Elder Wand, the half-giant spoke no more.

Voldemort turned now to Harry and Hermione.

"Ah, Harry. Seems you've brought a little friend? It appears as though you cannot find it in yourself to stop people from giving their lives for you." Voldemort chuckled, "And what's your name, foolish girl?"

Harry pushed Hermione halfway behind him. He wanted this to be quick, painless. He didn't want Hermione to be tortured again.

"I asked you," Voldemort said more harshly "_What is your name?_ Imperio!"

The spell hit Hermione, and she answered very quickly, "Hermione Granger!"

Hermione looked on the verge of tears. Harry moved his thumb gently over her hand again; he wanted this to be over, for it to bring her as little pain as possible.

"Ah, so you're the filthy mudblood who's been traveling with Mr. Potter here, aren't you? You've broken several of the new laws, haven't you Hermione? Lord Voldemort is merciful.. I will not torture you. I think, it will bring young Harry here more pain to watch you die first, don't you?" Voldemort smiled as he raised his wand. Harry looked into Hermione's eyes one last time. Even clouded with fear, he could see that they were still warm and brown.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_ Voldemort screamed, and Harry saw the flash of green light, he felt Hermione's grip on his hand loosen, and he watched the light leave her eyes. He caught her body, and held it to him. He'd fall with her, he thought. He'd hold her up until the end.

"Now, Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived." Voldemort looked Harry right in the eyes, "Come to die."

Harry saw the wand raise, he heard the words, and he saw the flash of light. He held Hermione's body tight to him, burying his face in her hair. And in an instant, everything was gone.

**Hello, my lovelies! Since the DVD release of DHP2, I've seen it about 4 or 5 times, and the scene where Hermione offers to die with Harry breaks my heart every time. I thought, though, that it would be even more heart-breaking if she actually went with him. And thus, this fic was born! I'll probably write another chapter, where the two meet up with Dumbledore, and then another which will take place after the battle, where they discuss what happened . . . Unless I decide to keep Hermione dead :D **

**Iunno. Tell me in reviews what you'd like to happen, maybe I'll consider it. Thanks, guys! **


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